Discursos sobre la escasez: estrategias de gestión de la privación alimentaria en tiempos de crisis

The economic crisis has forced some Spaniards to apply for social aid. Although it is not possible to adequately quantify how many people are in food deprivation, it is a problem that needs to be diagnosed given its severity. This paper explores the way in which this group manages food aid in a context that is new to them in a double sense: it is the first time that they find themselves without resources to solve their daily needs and this is the first time they request aid social. The data come from in-depth interviews conducted with 14 people who have participated in a food emergency program in 2012. It has been shown that people with severe material deprivation manage food aid with expertise. Nonetheless, this effort does not meet their basic needs because they prioritize other payments before food. It has also been seen that they perceive their situation as provisional and show indignation towards a situation of which they feel victims. They hope to leave this situation through the employment and not through the institutional aid. La reciente crisis económica ha obligado a algunos españoles a recurrir a la ayuda institucional. Aunque no se puede cuantificar adecuadamente cuántas personas se encuentran en situación de privación alimentaria, se trata de un problema que es necesario diagnosticar dada su gravedad. En este trabajo se explora la forma en que este colectivo gestiona la ayuda alimentaria en un contexto que es nuevo para ellos en un doble sentido: es la primera vez que se encuentran sin recursos para resolver sus necesidades cotidianas y es la primera vez que solicitan ayuda social. Los datos proceden de entrevistas en profundidad realizadas a 14 personas que han participado en un programa de emergencia alimentaria en el año 2012. Se ha podido comprobar que estas personas con privación material severa, gestionan con pericia la ayuda alimentaria, pero esto no les hace tener éxito en la solución de sus necesidades básicas dado que priorizan otros pagos antes de resolver la alimentación. También se ha visto que perciben su situación como provisional y muestran indignación hacia una situación de la que se sienten víctimas y de la que esperan salir a través del empleo y no de la ayuda institucional.The economic crisis has forced some Spaniards to apply for social aid. Although it is not possible to adequately quantify how many people are in food deprivation, it is a problem that needs to be diagnosed given its severity. This paper explores the way in which this group manages food aid in a context that is new to them in a double sense: it is the first time that they find themselves without resources to solve their daily needs and this is the first time they request aid social. The data come from in-depth interviews conducted with 14 people who have participated in a food emergency program in 2012. It has been shown that people with severe material deprivation manage food aid with expertise. Nonetheless, this effort does not meet their basic needs because they prioritize other payments before food. It has also been seen that they perceive their situation as provisional and show indignation towards a situation of which they feel victims. They hope to leave this situation through the employment and not through the institutional aid